THEY MIGHT have already etched their names in rugby folklore by winning back-to-back World Cups, but Cheslin Kolbe and the current crop of South African players continue to find ways to keep themselves motivated.
Having previously won the tournament in 1995 and 2007, the Springboks returned to the RWC summit in 2019 with a final victory over England.
Kolbe scored his country’s second try in a commanding 32-12 win on that day, and he also played a key role from the left wing as South Africa defended their World Cup crown with a slender 12-11 success at the expense of New Zealand in Stade de France in 2023.
Yet despite these monumental achievements, the Springboks are showing no signs of slowing down, and this October saw them claiming The Rugby Championship for the second year in a row.
This leaves Kolbe and his teammates with an impressive set of international honours, but there is still plenty of hunger within their set-up to continue this recent run of success.
“I think it’s to stay on top [that we remain motivated]. Winning back-to-back and standards in the past, we can’t rely on that. They’re not going to win us matches, and that’s what’s special about this team — the environment, the culture that the coaches and players have bought into, has been unbelievable,” Kolbe acknowledged.
Advertisement
“The plans that the coaches come up with, and the buy-in the players have, it’s incredible. Whether the coaches come up with a plan, players also have a say. Whether they think there’s something better we can do, which is also a good environment to have.
“For us, the past few years, the players have been given opportunities and making the most out of them as well. We get a lot of energy from that. There’s no A or B team here. We respect each and every one of us.”
After being rested for last weekend’s 32-14 win against Italy in Turin, it is anticipated Kolbe will return to South Africa’s starting line-up when they face Ireland in a Quilter Nations Series fixture at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.
On his most recent visit to the Aviva as a player on 19 May 2023, Kolbe was named player of the match when his Toulon side defeated Glasgow Warriors to claim the EPCR Challenge Cup title.
He had featured for the Springboks the previous November in an autumn international at the same venue, but final-quarter tries from Franco Mostert and Kurt-Lee Arendse couldn’t prevent a 19-16 defeat to the Irish.
The Aviva hasn’t always been a happy hunting ground for South Africa in modern times, as they have lost three times away to Ireland since their last triumph there on 10 November 2012.
The fact Springboks supremo Rassie Erasmus has never won with South Africa in Dublin has also been mentioned in recent days — he also lost the four outings he had with Munster at Irish Rugby HQ in the past — though Kolbe stressed this hasn’t been a talking point within their set-up.
“No, it’s not something we’ve been thinking about. We definitely haven’t won here since 2012, if I’m not mistaken. Whether we played in South Africa, whether we came here or on a neutral ground, it’s always been 50/50. We just need to make sure that we implement what we want to implement on the weekend and what the coaches have set out for us,” Kolbe added.
“Personally, for me as a player, I haven’t won here [with South Africa]. We came close in 2022, but just didn’t capitalise on a few opportunities and shots at goal that definitely cost us back then. Our focus is just to make sure that we train as well as we can throughout this week. That we’re confident going into the weekend and just implement what you’ve trained throughout the week. Just play a good game of rugby.”
Although the weather has been relatively dry since they arrived in Dublin on Sunday, there is a strong chance that South Africa will encounter wet conditions for their latest showdown with Ireland on Saturday.
Temperatures might also prove to be quite low for the Springboks’ penultimate Test of 2025 — they will close out the calendar year against Wales next weekend — but this isn’t something Kolbe will be overly fazed by.
“The past few times I’ve come to Ireland, it’s always been cold, especially this time of the year. I think it’s definitely going to be colder come this weekend, but I don’t think that’s going to have a massive impact on the players,” Kolbe added.
“We are used to it since we got here on Sunday, but I think it will definitely be, if it’s raining, a big kicking game and one that we always make sure that we’re prepared for.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
'The culture that the coaches and players have bought into has been unbelievable'
THEY MIGHT have already etched their names in rugby folklore by winning back-to-back World Cups, but Cheslin Kolbe and the current crop of South African players continue to find ways to keep themselves motivated.
Having previously won the tournament in 1995 and 2007, the Springboks returned to the RWC summit in 2019 with a final victory over England.
Kolbe scored his country’s second try in a commanding 32-12 win on that day, and he also played a key role from the left wing as South Africa defended their World Cup crown with a slender 12-11 success at the expense of New Zealand in Stade de France in 2023.
Yet despite these monumental achievements, the Springboks are showing no signs of slowing down, and this October saw them claiming The Rugby Championship for the second year in a row.
This leaves Kolbe and his teammates with an impressive set of international honours, but there is still plenty of hunger within their set-up to continue this recent run of success.
“I think it’s to stay on top [that we remain motivated]. Winning back-to-back and standards in the past, we can’t rely on that. They’re not going to win us matches, and that’s what’s special about this team — the environment, the culture that the coaches and players have bought into, has been unbelievable,” Kolbe acknowledged.
“The plans that the coaches come up with, and the buy-in the players have, it’s incredible. Whether the coaches come up with a plan, players also have a say. Whether they think there’s something better we can do, which is also a good environment to have.
“For us, the past few years, the players have been given opportunities and making the most out of them as well. We get a lot of energy from that. There’s no A or B team here. We respect each and every one of us.”
After being rested for last weekend’s 32-14 win against Italy in Turin, it is anticipated Kolbe will return to South Africa’s starting line-up when they face Ireland in a Quilter Nations Series fixture at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.
On his most recent visit to the Aviva as a player on 19 May 2023, Kolbe was named player of the match when his Toulon side defeated Glasgow Warriors to claim the EPCR Challenge Cup title.
He had featured for the Springboks the previous November in an autumn international at the same venue, but final-quarter tries from Franco Mostert and Kurt-Lee Arendse couldn’t prevent a 19-16 defeat to the Irish.
The Aviva hasn’t always been a happy hunting ground for South Africa in modern times, as they have lost three times away to Ireland since their last triumph there on 10 November 2012.
The fact Springboks supremo Rassie Erasmus has never won with South Africa in Dublin has also been mentioned in recent days — he also lost the four outings he had with Munster at Irish Rugby HQ in the past — though Kolbe stressed this hasn’t been a talking point within their set-up.
“No, it’s not something we’ve been thinking about. We definitely haven’t won here since 2012, if I’m not mistaken. Whether we played in South Africa, whether we came here or on a neutral ground, it’s always been 50/50. We just need to make sure that we implement what we want to implement on the weekend and what the coaches have set out for us,” Kolbe added.
“Personally, for me as a player, I haven’t won here [with South Africa]. We came close in 2022, but just didn’t capitalise on a few opportunities and shots at goal that definitely cost us back then. Our focus is just to make sure that we train as well as we can throughout this week. That we’re confident going into the weekend and just implement what you’ve trained throughout the week. Just play a good game of rugby.”
Although the weather has been relatively dry since they arrived in Dublin on Sunday, there is a strong chance that South Africa will encounter wet conditions for their latest showdown with Ireland on Saturday.
Temperatures might also prove to be quite low for the Springboks’ penultimate Test of 2025 — they will close out the calendar year against Wales next weekend — but this isn’t something Kolbe will be overly fazed by.
“The past few times I’ve come to Ireland, it’s always been cold, especially this time of the year. I think it’s definitely going to be colder come this weekend, but I don’t think that’s going to have a massive impact on the players,” Kolbe added.
“We are used to it since we got here on Sunday, but I think it will definitely be, if it’s raining, a big kicking game and one that we always make sure that we’re prepared for.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Cheslin Kolbe Preview Rugby Ireland Republic South Africa the Springboks